1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a scenario editing system which helps create multimedia applications, such as those supplied as CD-ROM titles or distributed on the World Wide Web, beginning in the planning and design stage (scenario creation stage).
2. Description of the Related Arts
When creating multimedia application products which will be supplied as CD-ROM titles or distributed on the World Wide Web, the production work usually proceeds as follows: first, a producer or scenario writer writes a multimedia project chart or a story rough sketch (scenario) called a storyboard, then, based on this scenario, designers or creators create voice or video objects as actual media objects (hereinafter referred to as "media objects"), and then programmers assemble the media objects with the use of an authoring tool such as Director or Authorware. In a conventional computer-aided scenario creation method used in the scenario creation stage, rough sketches, comments, and so on are drawn on the screen to create a multimedia project chart. (See the description of "Scenario editing-display method and system" disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 3-327222, hereinafter referred to as prior art 1.) The method or system according to prior art 1 allows the user, in the planning and design stage where no media object is available, to define individual windows, to enter a multimedia project chart composed of rough sketches, comments, and so on with a tool similar to a drawing tool, and to specify the attributes such as display layouts, timing, and user interactions for the above multimedia project chart. It also allows the user to execute the multimedia project chart using specified attributes, thus making it possible for producers, scenario writers, and creators to share application images even in the initial development stage where no media object is available.
Also introduced is an application creation method in which media objects are associated with visual objects on a screen where a multimedia project chart is displayed. An example of this method is described in "Multimedia authoring system MediaDesc(2)--Scenario creation support, Draft proceedings 3F-5 for the 52nd national conference of Information Processing Society of Japan" (hereinafter referred to as prior art 2). Prior art 2 has introduced a scenario editing tool named "Storyboard Editor." With the Storyboard Editor, the user can create a null "slot" which temporarily represents a non-existing media object. During slot editing, the user can specify the contents of a slot, such as the layout of a media object on the screen, display timing, display effects, and comments. With specifically-designed slots displayed on the screen, the user uses a media browser or Explorer under control of Windows to drag and drop an icon or a thumbnail, representative of a media object, into one of the slots to cause the slot to associate with the media object. By doing so, the user substitutes the media object for the slot (hereinafter called media binding). This operation enables the user to create an application easily using a scenario described visually as a rough sketch.
In addition, a method in which no multimedia project chart is used has been introduced. In this method, a plurality of templates each describing the attributes such as screen layouts, media types, and screen-to-screen transitions are provided. An example of this method is described in "Proceedings of IEEE Multimedia '96, Extending Styles to Hypermedia Documents, pp. 417-424." This method also uses slots, similar to those used in prior art 2, for a hypermedia creation style template to make editing simpler (hereinafter referred to as prior art 3). Another example is the authoring tool named "CBT Express" introduced by AIMTEC for use in the education field; it provides the user with templates, each associated with a media layout and background, from which the user can select one best suited for his or her need to create an electronic or hard-copy version of a storyboard (hereinafter referred to as prior art 4).
In summary, the user uses one of known methods to create an application from a scenario seamlessly. To do so, the user types into a multimedia project chart or selects a template and then performs media binding through the drag-and-drop operation.
On the other hand, a special storyboard tool has been used in film production. For example, Storyboard Artist from Power Production provides the user with contents samples such as characters, props, and settings. The user can arrange these samples or capture moving video objects using Quick Time or some other program to visualize ideas or to confirm the result on a slide show (hereinafter referred to as prior art 5). However, it should be noted that the storyboard is for producing video applications only; the storyboard itself does not produce any application. Instead, in film production, a scheduling tool and a cost estimate tool for use in all the stages from script writing to shooting are available. For example, Movie Magic Scheduling from Screenplay Systems Inc. analyzes a text-base script, extracts scenes, and generates a shooting schedule (hereinafter referred to as prior art 6). Movie Magic Budgeting, also from Screenplay Systems Inc., references data produced by Movie Magic Scheduling and lists cost management information (cast, setting, props, etc.) (hereinafter referred to as prior art 7).